Buyers of a Wright Home in Phoenix Reconsider a Deal ‘Too Good to Be True’

When John Hoffman and Steve Sells bought the house for $1.8 million in June, paying $1 million less than its previous owners paid to Wright’s granddaughters, “we thought we had hit a home run,” Mr. Sells said.Credit
Joshua Lott for The New York Times

PHOENIX — For Sale: a four-bedroom, four-bathroom piece of history made of galvanized steel and concrete, rising above a landscape of cactus and citrus trees in one of this city’s most sought-after neighborhoods.

It is priced at $2,379,000. It needs a little T.L.C. Oh, and it was built by Frank Lloyd Wright, architectural icon.

Its owners, John Hoffman and Steve Sells, high school contemporaries from Meridian, Idaho, are hoping to sell the house before Nov. 7, when the City Council is scheduled to vote on giving it landmark status, which they oppose. Though they agree that the house ought to be saved — “The property is gorgeous,” Mr. Sells said in its master bedroom one morning — they say they must first safeguard their investment, as well as their livelihood.

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The house, designed by Mr. Wright and built in 1952, is full of curved edges.Credit
Joshua Lott for The New York Times

“If it becomes a landmark,” Mr. Sells said, “we’re out of business.”

The house, built in 1952, bears Wright’s signature on a red tile by its front door — equal parts seal of approval and certificate of authenticity. The wood on the cabinets, doors, desks, shelves and sofas, all designed by Wright, sparkled, having been brought back to life by coats of lemon oil Mr. Sells diligently applied early this week as a new real-estate listing went live.

Piano hinges, which line cabinets and doors from top to bottom, still hold strong. The floor, in colored concrete, has cracks that show its age but also lend it a degree of rugged charm.

When Mr. Hoffman and Mr. Sells bought the house for $1.8 million in June, paying $1 million less than its previous owners paid to Wright’s granddaughters, “we thought we had hit a home run,” Mr. Sells said.

The city gave them permission to split the lot, and their plan was to build two luxury homes and make a killing. “The dirt alone,” in the heart of the Arcadia neighborhood and in the shadows of Phoenix’s picturesque Camelback Mountain, “would be worth $1.2 to 1.4 million,” Mr. Sells said.

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"The dirt alone,” in the heart of the Arcadia neighborhood and in the shadows of Phoenix’s picturesque Camelback Mountain, “would be worth $1.2 to 1.4 million,” Mr. Sells said.Credit
Joshua Lott for The New York Times

They felt that the approval to divide the lot implied permission to demolish the house, which Wright had built for his son and daughter-in-law, David and Gladys, and indeed, they briefly had a demolition permit.

It was, Mr. Sells said, “a deal that seemed almost too good to be true.”

And, in many ways, it was.

Just as Mr. Sells and Mr. Hoffman prepared to close on the deal, preservationists involved in protecting Wright’s legacy reached out to the city, asking that the house be considered for landmark status. Mr. Sells, 50, a technology entrepreneur, said he had no idea of its significance, or of the difference “between Frank Lloyd Wright and the Wright brothers.”

“I grew up in Idaho rodeoing,” he said. “We had no money.”

Mr. Hoffman and Mr. Sells — principals of a company called 8081 Meridian after Meridian High School and their graduation years, 1980 for Mr. Sells and 1981 for Mr. Hoffman — got their demolition permit in August.

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The kitchen table’s round edges match the round edges of the fireplace, which match the round edges of the ramp that leads from ground to second level like an inverted U.Credit
Joshua Lott for The New York Times

By the end of September, though, under pressure from preservationists and perhaps realizing that the owners were serious about razing the house, the city invalidated the permit.

By then, the landmark designation process was well under way.

The house dances. The glass of its windows is mounted on frames that curve, following the flow of its spiraling walls. The furniture inside, all of it designed by Wright, is a study in symmetry. The kitchen table’s round edges match the round edges of the fireplace, which match the round edges of the ramp that leads from ground to second level like an inverted U.

The house surprises. Sheets of plywood hug support columns as they cross the innards of the closets in a child’s bedroom, hiding them playfully as in a game of peekaboo. Inverted triangles carved out of galvanized steel hang from the edge of the roof, casting shadows on the ground that change as the sun moves.

Mr. Sells is not your stereotypical developer. He enjoys off-road racing, wears a hoop earring in his left ear and has tattoos on his arms and neck, among them the name of his mother, who died when he was young, and the words “Triple Trouble.”

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A signature tile near the front door.Credit
Joshua Lott for The New York Times

Mayor Greg Stanton of Phoenix has been working closely to help Mr. Sells find a buyer; they speak by phone often. The city wants the house saved. If a buyer is not found by the time the Council gathers next month to consider giving the house landmark status, Mr. Sells plans to be at the hearing, making his case.

“Does the house deserve landmark status? Yes. This place needs to be preserved,” he said. “But when three Wright granddaughters sell it for $2.8 million, for me to carry the cross for Frank Lloyd Wright, that’s not fair.”

In Arizona, where ownership rights are strong, granting a property landmark status shields it from development or destruction for only three years. So if the Council approves the request, something else might happen, Mr. Sells said.

“I’ll move in, invite everybody to come in and take their pictures, and I’m going to wait three years,” he said, interlacing his fingers behind his neck as he slouched on the orange cushions of the master bedroom’s seating area. “Then I’m going to knock it down to recoup my losses.”

A version of this article appears in print on October 26, 2012, on page A24 of the New York edition with the headline: Buyers of a Wright Home in Phoenix Reconsider a Deal ‘Too Good to Be True’. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe